The Loerie

What The Loerie does

The Loerie Awards Company NPC is a South African non-profit company founded in 1978 that operates The Loerie Awards, the premier annual awards programme recognising creative excellence in advertising and brand communication across Africa and the Middle East. It is headquartered at 24 7th Avenue, Parktown North, Johannesburg (Registration No. 2005/010969/08) and is governed by an industry board drawn from senior agency and brand leadership across the region. Its operating model is event-driven: agencies, brands, production companies and students submit work through an online entry portal (entry.loeries.com), entries are judged by international jury presidents during the year, and results culminate annually in Loeries Creative Week in Cape Town, which combines masterclasses, the International Seminar of Creativity, networking events, and the awards ceremony itself.

The organisation's core technology is a modest web-based stack consisting of the entry submission portal, an e-commerce store for certificates, statues and merchandise, and a digital archive plus Official Rankings system; payments are processed by PayGate with no credit card data stored on site. Beyond the awards ceremony, the product portfolio includes Loeries Creative Week, the Official Rankings (which inform the global WARC Creative 100), the Young Creatives Award, Hall of Fame, Marketing Leadership and Innovation Award, Student Awards, the Loeries Youth Committee, the Creative Future Scholarship, and the Rewrite the Script DE&I campaign.

The Loeries generates revenue through four streams: entry fees (which include a R500 annual membership component expiring 28 February), ticket sales to Creative Week events and the International Seminar of Creativity, online merchandise sales, and category/media sponsorships from partners including TikTok for Business, Woolworths, Dove, AB InBev, Google, Meta, Vodacom, JCDecaux, Nando's and the City of Cape Town. Pricing is tiered (early bird vs standard deadlines) and the membership mechanic embedded in entry fees provides a recurring annual component. Customer segments are agencies (e.g., Joe Public United, Ogilvy, FCB, Grey Advertising, Impact BBDO), production companies (Bomb Shelter, Giant Films, Romance), brands (NBA, KFC, Nedbank, Chicken Licken, Volkswagen, Coca-Cola) and students/creative institutions across 18 countries.

Name

The Loerie

Legal name

The Loerie Awards Company NPC

Website

https://loeries.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1978

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Loeries is a South African non-profit that runs Africa's and the Middle East's premier annual creative awards, serving agencies, brands, production companies and students across 18 countries through entry submissions, Creative Week events, Official Rankings and youth talent programmes.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Creative Industry Awards

NAICS

Convention and Trade Show Organizers (56192), Business Associations (813910)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Executive Summits & Invitation-Only Forums (MPAGAGAK)

Keywords

• Creative awards
• Advertising competitions
• Brand communication awards
• Creative industry festivals
• Industry rankings

Headquarters

HQ city

Johannesburg

HQ country

South Africa

HQ region

Africa

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Entry Fees: Agencies, brands, and production companies pay entry fees to submit work to the awards. A portion of each entry (R500) constitutes an annual membership fee, with membership running one calendar year expiring on 28 February.
2. Ticket Sales: The organization sells tickets to Creative Week events, the International Seminar of Creativity, and various associated events and ceremonies.
3. Merchandise Sales: Online store sales of certificates, statues, and other Loeries merchandise through the company website.
4. Sponsorships and Partnerships: Partnerships with brands and organizations including TikTok for Business (digital category partner), Woolworths (Young Creative Award), and various category partners and media partners.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

The Loerie Awards Company NPC administers annual creative awards ceremonies, the Creative Week festival, and Official Rankings for the advertising and brand communication industry across Africa and the Middle East. It recognises work by agencies, brands, and production companies through award categories such as the Young Creatives Award, Hall of Fame, Marketing Leadership and Innovation Award, and Student Awards. The organisation additionally runs youth development programmes, a Student Expo, scholarships, and DE&I initiatives supporting the regional creative pipeline.

Product overview

The Loerie Awards is a not-for-profit company operating as Africa and the Middle East's premier creative awards platform. The core offering consists of The Loerie Awards ceremony - the highest accolade for creativity and innovation in the region - along with Loeries Creative Week, an annual festival combining networking, masterclasses, seminars, and award ceremonies. Supporting programmes include the Loeries Official Rankings (industry benchmark), Young Creatives Award, Hall of Fame induction, Marketing Leadership and Innovation Award, and Student Awards. The organisation also runs the Loeries Youth Committee for emerging professionals, the Creative Future Scholarship for disadvantaged learners, and the Rewrite the Script DE&I campaign. Entry submission is managed through the official Loeries Entry Portal, with all activities culminating in Loeries Creative Week and the annual awards ceremony.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Loerie Awards

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 2,100 entries annually from 18 countries
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core, flagship and minor.

• WoolworthscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023Woolworths formed a strategic partnership with The Loeries to support and grow the Loeries Young Creative Award. The partnership reflects Woolworths' dedication to nurturing and empowering youth, matching The Loeries mission to inspire and empower the next generation of creative leaders.
• City of Cape TownflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022The City of Cape Town hosts Loeries Creative Week annually. The partnership ensures greater focus on the impact of brand communications in growing economies. In 2022, The Loeries contributed over R90m to the City's GDP through 17 official events and 13 partner events. The partnership cements Cape Town's reputation as a creative capital.
• TikTok for BusinessflagshipGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 January 2021TikTok for Business is the official digital category partner for The Loeries. The partnership celebrates the best in digital creativity across Africa and the Middle East. The collaboration includes initiatives such as searching for innovative content creators and a masterclass at Loeries Creative Week on how brands can leverage the platform. The partnership entered its third year in 2023.
• Meta and UN WomencoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021The Loeries Youth Committee (LYC) was set up in 2021 in partnership with Meta and UN Women with the aim of supporting young brand communication professionals from Africa and the Middle East with knowledge, training and the opportunity to create real change in the industry. The LYC launched the 'Rewrite the Script' DE&I campaign.
• DovecoreGTM or Marketing PartnerDove is the sponsor of the Public Service Award category at The Loeries. The award recognizes outstanding creative work in the charity and social impact sector. Partners include DStv Media Sales, Gearhouse, and various category partners including AB InBev, Barron, Brand South Africa, Facebook, Google, JCDecaux, Nando's, Tsogo Sun, Vodacom, and Woolworths.
• International Jury PresidentscoreOthersThe Loeries invites international jury presidents from prestigious global agencies to lead judging panels. In 2023, jury presidents included Shannon Washington (R/GA), Geet Rathi (Area 23), Paul Chan (Cheil), Marco Venturelli (Publicis Conseil), and Brad Reilly (McCann Enterprise).
• Gallo ImagesminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorOfficial media partner providing photo coverage and media kit services for Loeries Creative Week events and award ceremonies.
• Media Partners (BizCommunity, Campaign Middle East, Modern Marketing)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerIndustry media outlets including BizCommunity, Campaign Middle East, Modern Marketing, Brand Communicator Nigeria, and others provide editorial coverage and promotion of Loeries activities and winners.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Regional players

• Spikes Asia: Asia-Pacific creative awards festival, also operated by Ascential. Comparable as a regional creative awards peer with a similar awards + masterclass + festival format, but covering APAC rather than AME, making it a non-overlapping geographic peer.

Broad incumbents

• D&AD Awards: UK-based international creative awards body that recognizes craft and creativity across advertising and design. Comparable as a peer awards organization with a pencil-tier ranking system analogous to Loeries' Gold/Silver/Bronze structure, but with global rather than AME regional scope.
• Cannes Lions: The global benchmark for creative advertising awards, run by Ascential. Directly comparable as a peer awards organization, but operates at global scale with significantly higher entry volumes and fees, serving as the 'global tier' that Loeries feeds into via the WARC Creative 100 integration.
• Clio Awards: North American-headquartered creative awards program for advertising, design, and communication. Operates a similar annual awards and entry-fee revenue model as Loeries, and competes for the same global agency and brand entry budgets.
• The One Show: The One Club for Creativity's flagship awards program covering advertising, interactive, and design. Comparable as a peer creative awards platform with a similar Gold/Silver/Bronze tier structure and an annual flagship event analogous to Loeries Creative Week.
• Effie Awards: Global marketing effectiveness awards program recognizing campaigns that deliver measurable business results. Comparable as an adjacent peer awards platform, focusing on effectiveness rather than pure creative craft, and often co-entered by the same agencies and brands that participate in Loeries.

Others

• Association for Communication and Advertising (ACA): South African industry body for advertising agencies that co-revitalized the Loeries in 2004. Comparable as a peer industry organization serving the same South African agency community, with overlapping governance and member rosters.
• Creative Circle South Africa: South African creative industry body that also co-revitalized the Loeries in 2004. Operates the separate Annual Awards and shares close governance ties with the Loeries organization, making it a closely linked industry peer.

Direct peers

• Dubai Lynx: The MENA region's premier creative awards festival, operated by Ascential (also the parent of Cannes Lions). The closest direct regional peer to Loeries, covering the Middle East and North Africa with a similar awards + festival model; Loeries' AME scope and Dubai Lynx's MENA focus are adjacent but overlapping.
• AME Awards (formerly AME International Festival): New York-based international awards program specifically recognizing advertising and marketing effectiveness across the Africa and Middle East region. Closely comparable as a peer awards organization operating in the same AME geography and serving the same agencies and brands.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/loeries
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCQOIL8y9fKWZSnXtG7PNuAA
• Facebookfacebook.com/Loeries
• LinkedInza.linkedin.com/company/the-loerie-awards
• Instagraminstagram.com/loerieawards

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Loerie